Seeing a private school open for application, Ms. Van immediately registered and deposited two million VND to reserve a spot, in case her child failed the 10th grade public school entrance exam.
Having "targeted" Doan Thi Diem High School (Bac Tu Liem District) for a long time, Ms. Thanh Van, from Ba Dinh District, is always ready, just waiting for the day the school announces enrollment. Having purchased the application form on February 20 - the first day of sale, the mother registered for direct admission based on her son's academic record. The school's admission requirement is that the candidate must have been an excellent student for 4 years and have good conduct.
Her child's GPA was always close to 9, so Ms. Van was not surprised when she received the admission notice two days later. The school required a non-refundable admission fee of two million VND. Ms. Van understood that this was a "deposit" to hold a place at the school. In addition, she had to pay an additional 10 million VND, including the first month's tuition, facilities, extracurricular activities, etc. The school said it would refund this amount if the student withdrew their application.
"I think the two million VND deposit is not too much, so I spent it immediately. The important thing is that my child has a backup place if he fails the public school entrance exam," said Ms. Van, adding that in addition to Doan Thi Diem, she will also apply to Nguyen Sieu school.
Ms. Thu Huong, Dong Da district, is also urgently looking for a private school to reserve a place for her child. The mother said she is interested in Ta Quang Buu and Hoang Cau schools, but neither have announced enrollment yet.
She said her family is not very well off, so she wants to find a school with a moderate deposit, "at most" 5 million VND, and monthly tuition is around that amount. Through friends, Ms. Huong heard that Ha Thanh High School is recruiting students, with a deposit of about 2 million VND.
"Ha Thanh School is nearly 10 km from my house, but I still plan to pay a deposit while waiting for the other schools," the mother said.
Many people have the same choice as Ms. Van and Huong. On a forum for parents in Hanoi with more than 140,000 members, the content about finding private schools; sharing and asking about experiences in submitting applications, facilities, tuition fees and deposits, is being discussed enthusiastically.
In another group of nearly 1,000 parents with children in grade 9, the situation is similar. Some parents said they would submit applications and deposit at 3 or 4 schools to choose from later, but some were concerned because the deposit and tuition fees were high compared to their family's financial situation.
Parents wait outside the gate of Hoang Cau High School to submit their applications, July 2023. Photo: Thao Ngan
Hanoi has about 100 private high schools, recruiting 27,000 10th graders. Many schools in the inner city usually announce recruitment from the beginning of the year. In addition to application fees and test fees (if any), parents must also deposit money if they want to reserve a spot after being admitted, the common amount is 2-5 million VND, in some cases up to 15, 20-23 million VND. Most schools do not refund this amount if the student does not enroll.
The principal of a junior high school said that paying a deposit to a private school to "prevent" your child from failing the 10th grade is a normal mentality. This practice has become increasingly popular as the race to get into public 10th grade in Hanoi, especially in the inner city, has become fierce in recent years.
Currently, Hanoi has 119 public high schools, which only accept about 60% of the students graduating from junior high school each year. This number will be lower if considering only the 12 inner-city districts, because the number of candidates in this area accounts for nearly half of the total number of students taking the 10th grade exam each year, but the number of high schools only accounts for 1/3. Not to mention, the number of students in Hanoi is constantly increasing, about tens of thousands each year.
Ms. Huong said that her house is in Dong Da district, the same enrollment area as Thanh Xuan and Cau Giay districts. This is one of the hot spots for the 10th grade exam because of its large population and few schools. To be admitted to a public school in this area, candidates must score at least 7.5 points in each subject.
"My child's academic performance is about 7.5-8 points, but taking exams is much more stressful, it is very difficult for him to maintain this score. Therefore, I had to find a way to register and deposit at a private school to prevent risks," said Ms. Huong.
Parents submitting applications and making deposits at many private schools at the same time causes a virtual admission rate, according to Associate Professor Dr. Dang Quoc Thong, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Doan Thi Diem High School.
Mr. Thong said that each year, the school enrolls about 600 students, receiving a total of nearly 4,000 applications. To ensure the number of students enrolled, the school must call 900-1,000 students to be admitted, because the virtual rate is usually around 30%.
According to Mr. Thong, the deposit is to limit the virtual rate, and at the same time, to let families consider and be responsible for their choices. In the first week of opening for sale of 2024 application forms, Mr. Thong said that about 2,000 parents registered. This number is similar to previous years, so the school predicts that the virtual rate will not fluctuate much.
In addition, the massive enrollment in private schools can put pressure on parents and students.
"Parents should not make things difficult for themselves. Finding 3-5 schools is unnecessary," said Mr. Thong.
Sharing the parents’ concerns, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Phuc, Vice Principal of Tran Duy Hung Secondary School, said that each family should only choose 1-2 schools. The reason is that even if many students register, in the end, they can only choose one school to study.
Therefore, the vice principal advised parents to base their choice on two criteria: their child's academic ability and the family's financial conditions and potential. He believes that parents should not be carried away by the majority or only look at the deposit amount, because many schools have low deposits but high tuition fees, or are too far from home, causing inconvenience in picking up and dropping off their children and participating in group activities.
"The important thing is still suitability," said Mr. Phuc.
Thanh Hang
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